Uniondale families preparing for the new school year received free school supplies, clothing, food and other resources as Tabernacle of Joy Church hosted its annual Community Day on Aug. 15.
The event, held at the church on Brookside Avenue, also brought community resources such as NuHealth. Children also enjoyed activities and a bounce house, while families had access to health and community resources.
Community Day is in its fourth year in its current format, but Crystal Mackey, the event’s coordinator, said Tabernacle of Joy has organized back-to-school giveaways and other outreach efforts since the early 1980s.
Her father, Apostle J. Raymand Mackey, and his wife, co-pastor Brenda Mackey, have led many of those efforts through co-sponsor Helping End Violence Now, or H.E.V.N., a faith-based coalition that works with schools, law enforcement and community organizations.
“It brings so much joy and happiness,” she said. “I’m so elated just to see smiles on the kids’ faces.”
The Community Day continued Tabernacle of Joy’s decades-long outreach efforts in Uniondale, providing families with essentials for the classroom while bringing residents and community organizations together before the new school year.
Barbara Solomon has been a member of the church for 35 years and has a joy in helping people around her.
“The TOJ community outreach represented the extended hand of God to the community,” said Solomon. “Church events of this nature are necessary to serve as a reminder to those most needy that someone cares and that they are not forgotten.
